VOL. 7, NO. 2 OCTOBER 10, 2016

17 Productivity Hacks for Your Military Staff by themilitaryleader.com (Sep 25, 2016) I bet that more than once a day, you let out

a sigh of frustration at the absentminded staff activity that surrounds you…Your boss asks why you didn’t respond to his “urgent” email. THE NEW OPERATIONS NCO TYPES IN ALL CAPS (incredibly annoying). Someone prints 30 full-page copies of the 53-slide presentation because, “there are 30 people in the meeting, right?” And in that meeting, your unit’s update doesn’t make it to the slides, even though you sent them yesterday.And those are just the ones you notice!

There a re p robab ly dozens more ine ffic ienc ies , id iosyncras ies , and

ineptitudes you aren’t even aware of that impair you and your staff’s productivity.Having spent a few years in the Army staff

mach ine , I o f fe r these immedia te adjustments to reclaim your sanity and reduce the needless, often well-intentioned but inefficient staff practices that keep you from getting more important work done.EMAILLet’s start with email. We hate it, but it’s

the military’s most prolific communication tool. We spend more time on email than anywhere else, yet we rarely issue guidance specifically aimed at becoming more efficient at managing it. If you have any authority over a group’s activity on email, implement these changes right away:Type in the BLUF. What military leader

has time to go searching for the main point of an email? Commanders and key staff members certainly don’t, and shouldn’t have to scroll to find it. Start your emails with the bottom line and you will find that it forces you to specify your recommendation, it condenses  your supporting writing, and people appreciate it greatly.Maximize the signature block. Have you

ever needed to call someone and figured you’d just flip to one of their emails to get the number? …and then slammed your mouse on the desk when you discovered no signature block? Those are some of my most annoyed moments at work. Fix the problem right away by creating a

signature block template and making it

mandatory for your people to use it. Put in all the unit mottos and life-changing quotes you want, but for goodness sakes put your phone/email contact information in there. And this is important…set them to display on Forwards and Replies, not just New Email. It sounds nerdy, but people inside and outside your organization will silently thank you.Set some rules. Did you know that in

Microsoft Outlook, you can set a rule to display your boss’s emails  in red? Or that you can flag all emails about the upcoming deployment? Or that you can redirect the daily unit reports to a specific folder for browsing later? Spend a moment thinking about whose communication is priority, what information you need to know immediately, and what information you can pool into batches for consumption later. Then customize your inbox so you don’t have to repeat the process for every new email. (Find the Rules Wizard under the “Home” tab in Outlook.)Call instead. If you’ve got an urgent item

that needs attention, do not rely on email. On the PACE plan, email should be a “C”…behind “face to face” and “phone call.” You can’t hold someone accountable for critical i n fo rmat ion i f you use a pass ive communication method to transmit it.Save the clicks. If you’re not using the

Message Preview Pane, it’s time to up your game. Put it on the right side of your window (not below your messages), so you can read a whole email without having to

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Connect With Me chapcalvert.com@chapcalvertfacebook.com/chapcalvert

Daily Scriptures Oct 10 Isa 37-38, Ps 93, Acts 17 Oct 11 Isa 39-41, Ps 94, Acts 18 Oct 12 Isa 42-43, Ps 95, Acts 19 Oct 13 Isa 44-45, Ps 96, Acts 20 Oct 14 Isa 46-48, Ps 97, Acts 21 Oct 15 Isa 49-51, Ps 98, Acts 22 Oct 16 Isa 52-55, Ps 99, Acts 23

Transformative Articles ~ 17 Productivity Hacks for Your Military Staff~ 5 Ways For a Leader to Respond at the Outset of a Crisis

Spiritual Forge Pg 4~ Scripture, Prayer and Discipleship

Training Pg 5~ Eagle Ethics, JLPD (11 Oct - 13 Dec)~ Scream Free Parenting Seminar (15 Oct)~ Mil Spouse Wellness Summit (17-22 Oct)~ Ruck for Freedom (10 Nov)~ Family Resiliency Through Martial Arts

Things of Interest ~ Today In Church History Pg 2 ~ Bible Trivia Quiz Pg 5

CHAPLAIN’S SITREP 18TH COMBAT SUSTAINMENT SUPPORT BATTALION

CH (CPT) Andrew Calvert & SPC Malcolm Williams

VOL. 7, NO. 2 OCTOBER 10, 2016scroll. If you do have to scroll, use the spacebar instead of moving to the mouse.Speaking of keyboard shortcuts. CTRL

+ R replies to the current email. CTRL + F forwards it. CTRL + N creates a new message. CTRL + SHIFT + B brings up the address book. CTRL + ENTER sends your message (I love that one! So much quicker than transitioning to the mouse.)Why am I talking about individual email

practices in a post about staff productivity? Yes, so you become more efficient. But more importantly, so you can teach your team to become more efficient. The quicker they can perform routine tasks, the more they can accomplish.Remove distractions. Research shows

that distractions at work turn us into cognitive 5th graders. The constant pings from our connected network pull us out of the creative mode and prevent us from

contributing our best work. If you’ve got a big project to do, go silent. Set an Out of Office email reply or block off time on your calendar to focus. If you’re really bold, then turn off email notifications all together and set “email hours” dedicated to burning through your inbox. To be safe, I do recommend you set active notifications for emails, texts, and calls from your boss.Don’t let others plan your day. Another

key productivity concept regarding email is that it’s a horrible way to start your day. Read any number of several books on productivity and you’ll see that people get more done when they set their own priorities and control the time allocated to accomplishing them. Email does the opposite. It opens up a window for everyone else to heap requirements on you, draws you into reactive mode, and increases stress. “Please review these slides.” “What’s your guidance for next week’s meeting agenda?” “The exercise shifted one week to the right.” And on and on… Sure, the information might be important, but only at the right time. Use the first moments or even hours of the morning to plan and prioritize your day, or perhaps complete creative work you’re responsible for.Ok, enough about email. On to the really

exciting tips…PRINTINGJust tell them what to print. If you

haven’t given your people guidance about what and how much you want printed…you’re destroying the planet! Ok, that’s a little dramatic, but raise your hand if you’ve ever seen a leader sit through an entire meeting without touching the stack of slides in front of him. Or better yet, he comments on how he doesn’t even need them…or prefers two per page printouts. Army staffs don’t like to admit it, but print paper costs money. During the Sequestration Crisis of 2012, when we were deciding whether to buy toilet paper for the barracks or fuel for training, we basically stopped all printing in my regiment.Although it sounds tedious and silly, leaders could save a lot of money and time by issuing guidance for print requirements. Decide which key leaders get printouts and tell them when to print one slide per page versus multiple. (A moment of introspection will reveal that there is typically no reason you can’t print more than one slide per page.) Challenge your staff to use only digital copies, or at least print on the back of the page as well.Pro tip: get the most out of your print area

by using the printer settings instead of PowerPoint settings to set the print layout. Ever wondered how to print  four slides per

page with no margin? Here’s how to do it: From the PowerPoint Print tab, go to Printer Properties and select 4 slides per page. Then back in the PowerPoint Print tab, select “Full Page Slides” and “Scale to Fit Paper.” Those settings will give you four slides in Landscape mode that fill the entire print page.

MEETINGSSend read-ahead packets. On a related

topic, have you EVER been in a unit that actually sent read-ahead slides a day or two before a meeting? I have, once. It was a welcomed relief to the hurried frenzy that accompanied meetings in my other units. Yes, it is possible to send out read-ahead slides…leaders just have to accept that the information might be more than 24 hours old. But if you give an honest look, you’ll find that very little information we brief in military units needs to be real time. I’m talking about Training Meetings, Command and Staff, USR, and even some MDMP briefs. Set the deadline for information requirements and give your people a chance to consolidate the data and make it presentable the day before (not minutes before) the brief. People will eventually get used to the earlier timeline. This method lets people print their own copies (if needed) and gives them a chance to see the train before it hits them in the meeting.“Got a minute?” Sometimes it feels like

what takes up most of our time are the meetings that aren’t on the calendar, when someone knocks on the door and asks, “Got a minute?” What they really mean is, “Would you please stop what you’re doing for an indefinite length of time to discuss a topic you’re not prepared to talk about?”

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Today In Church History Monday - October 10, 1903Death of Emma Revell Moody, the wife

and co-worker of evangelist Dwight L. Moody, sometimes called the backbone of his success. Her serenity and mastery of finances counterbalanced his impulsive and emotional nature.Tuesday - October 11, 1531Death of Swiss reformer Ulrich Zwingli in

the Battle of Kappel.Wednesday - October 12, 1518Martin Luther and Cardinal Cajetan meet

in Augsburg over the following three days to discuss Luther’s 95 Theses. Cajetan tells Luther he must recant uncon-ditionally.Thursday - October 13, 1706Murder of the Coptic king Iyasu I of

Ethiopia. He had been a successful warr ior, a conci l iator of re l ig ious differences, and a great builder of churches.Friday - October 14, 1886The Presbyterian Synod of Michigan

adopts a resolution that leads to the founding of Alma College, principally to educate ministerial students for the Presbyterian Church.Saturday - October 15, 1647The Larger Westminster Catechism is

completed.Sunday - October 16, 1555English reformers Ridley and Latimer are

burned at the stake under the government of Queen Mary.

VOL. 7, NO. 2 OCTOBER 10, 2016Just like email notifications, drop-by chats can break your concentration and really veer your day off course. Instead of suffering through it, block off a portion of your day that’s open for anyone to come by with their 5-minute issue. It could be an unstructured window of time or you can split up the time by unit or staff section (“The S3 has 1545-1600. A Co. has 1600-1615.” And so on.) This method not only protects your productivity but gives subordinates time that they know is their’s and will prepare for.Pin the rose. A task or request for

information is destined to incompletion without a POC and a suspense. When you identify actions that must occur, pin the rose on someone right away, set a timeline for completion, and review them at the end of the meeting. And you can track those tasks using any number of tools – Microsoft Tasks, SharePoint Tasks, or even just the whiteboard.QUICK FIXESHere are a few one-off tips to consider in

making your work life a little more efficient and a little less frustrating.Product standardization. If your section,

unit, or staff publishes it, it should be standardized. That goes for slides, operations orders, memos, letters, and even internal communication. Templates set an expectation baseline, make it easier to spot mistakes, and provide predictability for subordinate HQs.Turn off the TV. Unless you work at a

strategic level office that has to respond to world events, you don’t need 24/7 news. It’s a distraction and it’s a depressant. If you prefer some type of background noise, go for music instead.Set reminders. It’s takes 5 seconds to tell

Siri to remind you to do your Cyber Awareness training, or to send the weekly update to the boss, or to check on a subordinate who lost a family member last week. Use the digital tools available to enhance your work activity.Go old school. Print and carry a hard

copy of key phone numbers and email addresses. It will come in handy when your 3-year-old drops your BlackBerry in the toilet.THE GOLDEN STAFF RULEFinally, it’s time to stop what is perhaps

the biggest cause of staff inefficiency: creating more questions instead of providing answers.Higher headquarters staffs frustrate

subordinate units when they publish cursory products and give vague guidance. Writing in passive voice is often a problem (“Ammunition will be delivered to A Co. at 0700.” Great, but by whom???). So is the tendency for staff members to receive

taskings and simply copy/paste them to lower headquarters for execution.When higher doesn’t do it’s homework on

what it will take to execute it’s own guidance, lower level staffs must respond with basic coordination questions. With multiple lower units demanding clarification, higher staff gets bogged down answering everyone and must amend the guidance.Before publishing that order or issuing

guidance, ask yourself and your staff:• Could the reader complete the mission

based on this guidance and nothing else?• Have we assigned responsibility and

POC information for every action and element involved?• If we received this guidance from our

higher headquarters, could we execute it?• What factors will the subordinate units

have to consider in executing this guidance and can we make it clear where this fits into other priorities?WHAT STAFF PRODUCTIVITY HACKS DO YOU USE?So, there’s my quick list of adjustments to

get the team operating more efficiently. What hacks do you use in your unit, staff, or personal routine? Leave a comment below or on social media.And if you want a great primer on how to

optimize your work habits with the brain in mind, check out Your Brain at Work: Strategies for Overcoming Distraction, Regaining Focus, and Working Smarter.

5 Ways For a Leader to Respond at the Outset of a Crisis by Ron Edmondson, ronedmondson.com (Oct 4, 2016) How do you respond when crisis comes to

the team you lead?I love the leadership displayed during a

scene in “It’s a Wonderful Life” where George Bailey is about to leave for his honeymoon and panic struck the Building and Loan. As the president, he was forced to avert his plan, go back and save the company. He kept the Building and Loan open with a couple of dollars to spare. It was a tense moment. Everything they had worked for was at risk, but the crisis was solved — at least until the next crisis came.This is the kind of time I’m referring to as a

leader. How do you respond? There have been several times where it appeared everything was a loss on the team I was leading. I’ve experienced it in planning a single project, as well as with the entire company felt in jeopardy when I was a small business owner.Crisis. At the outset of a crisis, how should the

leader respond? The way the leader responds in crisis

always dictates the way the team responds. I must admit, I haven’t always handled these times as well as George Bailey, but experience has taught me a few things.HERE ARE 5 WAYS TO RESPOND AT THE OUTSET OF A CRISIS:Slow downThe general tendency is to speed up, but

“haste makes waste”. You need to move quickly, and sometimes you have to put out some initial flames, but as much as you can, slow down long enough to think before you react.Don’t panicYou may indeed be in a panic on the

inside, but your outer composure as a leader will set the thermostat of your team. The team’s emotions will almost always be an exaggerated version of the leader’s emotions. If you appear hopeless, the teams emotions will appear even more hopeless.Get a planAfter you’ve addressed the most pressing

needs — brought more of a sense of calm to the team — back away long enough to create a plan of recovery. It could be the best exit plan you can develop, but either way you need a plan. In crisis mode, this sometimes seems like a waste of time. The thought is often if the ship is sinking you just need everyone to help bail water. In my experience, however, getting a plan in place makes the difference in the quality of your leadership through the crisis. This probably requires pulling a team together to quickly brainstorm and strategize.Navigate carefullyOnce a plan is in place, you need to

become an implementer of the plan. You’re the coach, cheerleader, captain of the ship at this point. You keep the team on task towards the end goal.Help the team recoverAfter the dust settles from the crisis, the

leader’s job isn’t complete until you help the team recover. This involves learning from what happened, making readjustments as needed, and helping the team begin again. In the best scenarios, this thought process begins to happen even during the crisis mode, giving the team some hope of better days to come.We all hope to avoid those days of crisis

on the team, but it helps to have a paradigm of how we should respond if or when they ever come.

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VOL. 7, NO. 2 OCTOBER 10, 2016

Daily Devotional 10 OCTOBER Do not work for the food that perishes, but

for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.” (John 6:27, ESV)Why did you join the Army – the money,

college opportunities, training, work experience, patriotism? Is your motivation based on temporary benefits or long lasting rewards? Would you do what you are doing knowing that everything you’ve worked for will not last? The question posed in today’s verse suggests the same thought. What are we working toward: a great retirement or the work of Christ on earth? One will last only during this lifetime, the other will last forever. What is your goal? Prayer: Lord, let me labor for things that

are eternal.11 OCTOBER 27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know

them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. (John 10:27-28, ESV)I remember vividly watching the Iraqi

shepherds walking their sheep along the roadways. They would call after them to move them or to warn them of oncoming traffic. They were there to watch after their flocks’ every need and their safety. The Lord is our Great Shepherd. How much more does He watch over and care for us, His flock. And we can rest assured that no one can take us from Him, not even ourselves. Prayer: Lord, neither height nor depth, nor

anything else in all creation, will be a will to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.12 OCTOBER But whoever drinks of the water that I will

give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will

become in him a spring of water wel l ing up to eternal life.” (John 4:14, ESV)Being in the desert through the summer months can be the most

miserable experience in life. It is so hot. It seems you

can’t get enough water. Even the water you have can get

so hot that it is terrible to drink. The thirst never seems to go a w a y . J e s u s

promises to fu lfi l l our spir i tual thirst. He can

replenish that incredible urge within us to make sense of everything. He can give us enough of this spiritual water, that it will sustain us even into eternity. Drink the water of Christ – it’s just right, even on a hot desert day. Prayer: Lord, may my thirst for you be

greater than for life.13 OCTOBER 17 Now when Jesus came, he found that

Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. …35 Jesus wept. 36 So the Jews said, See how he loved him!” (John 11:17, 35-36, ESV)When words are most empty, tears are

most apt. A tear stain on a letter says much more than the sum of all its words. A tear on a casket says what a spoken farewell never cou ld . What summons a mother ’s compassion and concern more quickly than a tear on a child’s cheek? What gives more support than a sympathetic tear on the face of a friend? Prayer: Lord, help me to love those around

me as you love them (and me). 14 OCTOBER He has told you, O man, what is good; and

what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6:8, ESV)Complicated religion wasn’t made by God.

God did not create a religion when He sent Jesus Christ to die for mankind. He established a means to have a relationship between Himself and man. Neither did He create a system of do’s and don’ts to impose a strict way of living upon us. He gave us guidelines that will enrich our lives and make it better for us as we follow Him. Give up the religion of Christianity and take on the relationship of Christ. Prayer: Lord, may I walk with you?

15 OCTOBER Only be very careful to observe the

commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, to love the Lord your God, and to walk in all his ways and to keep his commandments and to cling to him and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul.” (Joshua 22:5, ESV)Are you concerned about trying to keep all

the commands God gave in scripture? It’s easier than it seems. Just love the Lord with all your heart, mind, and soul. By doing that, you will fulfill the whole law of God. If you want to go the extra measure, then love

people the way God loves you. See, it’s easy. Or, you can rest by faith in the grace of Christ who can strengthen you to do all things.Prayer: Lord, there is nothing good within

me except what you have changed in me. 16 OCTOBER 10 Love one another with brotherly

affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. 11 Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. 13 Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. (Romans 12:10-13, ESV)Out of our willingness to love God and

people will come the ability to fulfill a laundry list of challenges given here. I fear that we try to do the opposite. If we try to do all these things, somehow God will accept us and be pleased. Let’s get it straight, God loves us in spite of ourselves and we do things out of the abundance of the love he entrusts to us. Prayer: Lord, empower me to respond in

love as you have shown your love to me.

A Baptist CatechismQuestion 3: How do we know there is a God?Answer: The light of nature in man, and the works of God, plainly declares that there is a God; but his word and Spirit only, do effectually reveal him to us for our salvation.Scripture: Romans 1:18-20; Psalm 19:1-2; 2 Timothy 3:15; 1 Corinthians 1:21-24; 2:9, 10; Matthew 11:27.Comment: The question distinguishes two kinds of knowledge: one is natural and comes from conscience ("the light of nature in man") and from the works of God in nature; the other is spiritual or saving, and comes from the recognition of the true value of God and the beauty of his character. Natural knowledge is possessed by all people and thus makes all people accountable to honor and thank God. Spiritual knowledge is possessed only by those whose natural blindness has been overcome by the Spirit of God. (1 Cor. 2:14-16). Our children must come to see the difference between these lest they think they are saved by much natural knowledge about God—which the devils also have James 2:19).

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Holy Spirit : His Work 43

2 Peter 1:20-21 (In Revelation & Inspiration) 20 knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from

someone’s own interpretation. 21 For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

VOL. 7, NO. 2 OCTOBER 10, 2016

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Tuesdays (1430-1630) at Tower Barracks

Chapel Annex: 11 Oct - 13 Dec

Training is for all PLs and Junior NCOs

(CPL to SSG)November 10, 2016 ~ 0600-0900 10K Ruck March & Prayer Breakfast

Nonperishable Food Drive For Warhammer Families

Load Your Ruck With Your Donations Soldiers Helping Soldiers & Families

1. He is enticed by his own lust (Jam 1:14) 2. A famine (Gen 12:10) 3. Timothy (2 Tim 1:5) 4. Spread the news about Jesus birth (Luke 2:17) 5. Nehemiah (Neh 2:17)

Weekly Bible Quiz 1. How is man “tempted”? 2. What natural disaster happened when Abram

and Sarai arrived in the land of Canaan? 3. Which disciple did Paul commend for having “the

same faith his mother had”? 4. What did the shepherds do after they had visited

Jesus? 5. Who went back to Jerusalem after the captivity to

encourage the people Answers

Spiritual Fitness & Family Resiliency

through Martial Arts Training

TUESDAY & THURSDAY18:30-20:00 at Tower Barracks Physical Fitness Center in the

Combatives Room.Ages 10 to

Adult. Parents must remain present with children 10-15 years old.For More

information see soartsd.com or contact CH Calvert.

E V E R A F T E R

the 2 nd annualm i l i t a r y sp ou s e we l l ne s s su m m i t

october 17-22, 2016 | virtual summitA C H I E V E H E A L T H A N D W E L L N E S S I N D E P E N D E N T L Y I N M I N D , B O D Y , A N D E M O T I O N T O P O S I T I V E L Y I M P A C T Y O U R

M I L I T A R Y M A R R I A G E .

Receive ten guest expert interviews to l isten to in the comfort of your home or on the go, plus an array of holist ic marriage resources .

register at www.in-dependent.org/wellness-summit

Corie Weathersi n d e p e nd en t

P R E S E N T E D B Y

E V E R A F T E R

the 2 nd annualm i l i t a r y sp ou s e we l l ne s s su m m i t

october 17-22, 2016 | virtual summitA C H I E V E H E A L T H A N D W E L L N E S S I N D E P E N D E N T L Y I N M I N D , B O D Y , A N D E M O T I O N T O P O S I T I V E L Y I M P A C T Y O U R

M I L I T A R Y M A R R I A G E .

Receive ten guest expert interviews to l isten to in the comfort of your home or on the go, plus an array of holist ic marriage resources .

register at www.in-dependent.org/wellness-summit

Corie Weathersi n d e p e nd en t

P R E S E N T E D B Y